Physical Activity and Associated Socioeconomic Determinants in Rural and Urban Tanzania: Results from the 2012 WHO-STEPS Survey

Abstract

Background. Physical inactivity contributes to the rising prevalence of noncommunicable diseases (NCDs). Given the rapidly increasing prevalence of NCDs in Low-Income Countries (LICs), comprehensive evaluation and documentation of physical activity (PA) status in this setting are crucial. Methods. We examined the demographic and social-economic antecedents of PA among adults (5398) from the 2012 Tanzania STEPS survey data. Statistical significance at the level of 0.05 was used to measure the strength of associations. Results. Majority of study participants attained the WHO-recommended levels of physical activity (96.7%). Levels were higher among those living in rural than in urban settings (98% versus 92%,  p<0.0001) and generally, urban residency, female gender, higher education achievement, and employment were significantly associated with low levels of PA. Participation in the different domains of PA (work, transport, and recreational) varied with living setting, levels of education, and employment status. Conclusion. These results describe PA status and associated social-economic determinants among adults in rural and urban Tanzania. The findings contribute to the growing evidence that implicates urbanization as a key driver for the growing prevalence of physical inactivity in LICs and underscore the need for tailored PA interventions based on demography and social-economic factors.